Australia drives record visitor arrivals

Visitor arrivals to New Zealand were up 3 percent in January 2015 (302,400), compared with January 2014, Statistics New Zealand said today.

“Arrivals from Australia drove the increase in visitor numbers, with more holidaymakers, people visiting friends and relatives, and business travellers,” population statistics manager Vina Cullum said. “In comparison, the number of visitors arriving from China fell relative to January last year because of a change in timing of the Chinese New Year.”

Australia, our biggest source of visitors, also contributed the biggest annual increase in visitors, up 31,100 to 1.26 million in the January 2015 year. China, the United States, and the United Kingdom were our next biggest sources of visitors in the January 2015 year.

New Zealand-resident travellers departed on 133,800 overseas trips in January 2015, up 5 percent from January 2014. The biggest increases were in departures to the United States (up 1,700) and Fiji (up 1,400). The annual increase was 4 percent, with New Zealand residents taking 2.28 million overseas trips in the January 2015 year, mostly to Australia (1.09 million trips).

Net inflow of migrants increases to a new peak in January

New Zealand had a seasonally adjusted net gain (more arrivals than departures) of 5,500 migrants in January 2015. This was a new all-time high, surpassing the October 2014 peak of 5,200. This was the third time in the last six months that the previous record net gain of migrants (4,700 in February 2003) has been surpassed.

The annual net gain of migrants in the January 2015 year (53,800) was up significantly on the January 2014 year (25,700). This was the sixth month in a row that the annual record for a net gain of migrants has been broken. The new annual record was driven by both more arrivals (with a new high of 111,500) and fewer departures.

New Zealand’s biggest net gain of migrants in the January 2015 year was from India (10,800). Most of the 12,000 migrants arriving from India came on student visas (9,100). The other biggest net gains in migrants were from China (7,600), the United Kingdom (5,100), and the Philippines (3,800).

Selwyn Manning, BCS (Hons.) MCS (Hons.) is an investigative political journalist with 23 years media experience. He specializes in reportage and analysis of socioeconomics, politics, foreign affairs, and security/intelligence issues.
Selwyn has extensive experience as a commentator and has provided live political analysis to a wide range of television and radio organizations broadcasting in New Zealand, Australia and globally including the BBC (Five Live, London) and BBC (World Service). He is currently a correspondent to Australia's FiveAA radio, and is a regular live-on-air panelist on Radio New Zealand's The Panel with broadcaster Jim Mora.